Rieslings - The Myth, The Reality and Its Importance for Success in India! Aug 12, 2013 06:42:52 AM Sweets wines have a stigma in india and world over. If its is sweet, then it must be either a) not good b) cheap 3) not manly enough to drink. The grape that always is caught in the cross fire is Riesling! Oh Rieslings - it must be too sweet then. For facts 80% or more rieslings made in the world are dry style (opposite of sweet). Very few regions in the world make sweet rieslings (the most famous being Mosel in Germany). Also there are 7 levels of sweetness in Rieslings. The lowest level being off dry style to the highest level being Ice Wine - which is really sweet and needs to be had with deserts or ice cream. And honestly the ice wines are so freaking expensive that most of the average wine drinking crowd in the world will not be able to afford it.
I really don't get it - every indian almost, has drinks that are sweet or has a touch of sweetness. Take tea or coffee, soft drink, rum & coke, vodka & red bull. Where is your manliness gone then when you have these!!! It is such a bullshit myth that it is depriving the new wine drinking crowd a truly magnificent wine.
Rieslings from Mosel, Germany are the purest expression of its land (terrior). A good riesling can make you fall in love. If you get to try one, you will know - sweetness is just one dimension of the wine, the other dimensions are acidity which acts as a balance to sweetness and make the Riesling taste refreshing and the last is the minerality in the wine which come from the mineral driven soils from the steep slopes (60 to 70 degree angle) of Mosel valley.
For India "I believe" - Rieslings are the key to get more people introduce to wines and more importantly make them like it instantly so they keep coming back for more! The sweetness of the wine - but in balance with acidity and minerality, captures the attention of the new wine drinker. India need such drink desperately to grow our drinking culture.
Parties at my house serve more Rieslings than any other wines. Why - because of my friends (guys included) are smitten by the drink and demand that I keep pouring more - and believe me they have no insecurities about their manlihood!!
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Vishal Kadakia Winekart Blog http://www.thewinekart.com/Blog